5-fluoro Orotic acid (5-FOA) is used to detect URA3 gene expression in yeast molecular genetic constructs. Yeast with an active URA3 gene, which encodes orotine-5''-monophosphate decarboxylase, converts 5-FOA to fluorodeoxyuridine, which is toxic to cells. Resistant strains of yeast that carry a mutation in the URA3 gene grow in the presence of 5-FOA if the media is supplemented with uracil.
5-Fluoroorotic Acid, Monohydrate (5-FOA) has become a valuable tool for research in the field of molecular genetics and has been employed in the selection of resistant strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae that possess a mutant URA3 gene which renders them orotidine-5í-phosphate decarboxylation.
